Jim Whiteley Pomona preview

Whiteley shooting for strong start in Pomona

POMONA, Calif. - After a fourth place national finish last season, NHRA Top Alcohol Dragster driver Jim Whiteley and his 'Y-Not Racing' team will be looking to start the year with a bang during this weekend's CARQUEST Auto Parts Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona, Calif. After bouncing back from a crash at this event last year to finish fourth, the team is hoping a fresh start this season will help their pursuit of the National Championship.

Whiteley, from Grand Junction, Colo., cites the team didn't log the amount of preseason testing they had hoped for prior to this weekend's season-opener, but the results were positive nonetheless.

"We had planned to test quite a bit," said Whiteley. "We had a good session in Vegas where we ran a 5.36, but the weather and the track conditions weren't really conducive to learning much in Phoenix, so we pulled the plug on that session. At any rate, we feel like we will be bringing a better car to Pomona than what we had last year. In that sense, it was a productive offseason."

The first half of the 2008 season will be used to gauge Whiteley's future in the class. Competitors in Top Alcohol Dragster can either run a supercharged alcohol combination like Whiteley runs or an injected nitromethane combination which has won the past six national championships. If Whiteley and his Norm Grimes (Five time National Championship winning Crew Chief) lead team determine the class is still in a state of disparity, the team may switch to the Pro Modified category.

"We've been working real hard to bridge the gap between us and the nitro cars," stated Whiteley. "Hopefully NHRA will keep an eye on the situation and keep the playing field level. We have a Pro Mod car going together if the field isn't level."

Qualifying will begin on Thursday for the Top Alcohol cars, followed by two sessions on Friday. Eliminations will begin on Saturday with round one and will conclude on Sunday.

For more information on the team, visit their website at www.YNotRacing.com

For more information on the team's fine partners visit the websites below:

www.bandjtransmission.com - Choose the racing transmission that powers the YNot Top Alcohol Dragster down the track.

www.Goodyear.com - Fly with the Eagles with Goodyear Tires.

www.NGKSparkPlugs.com - Choose the spark plugs winning teams like YNot Racing use, NGK.

The team would also like to thank: J&A Service, Raptor Industries, Advanced Oil Field Service and Knowles Enterprises

Contact: Will Hanna/ Pro Race Communications
Email: Will.Hanna@InsideTopAlcohol.com